Iterate Weekly - Issue 89
This week we're talking about DIY Apple repairs, Annual Reviews, Olympic Climate Concerns, Portable bathrooms that aren't gross, and SiriusXM Holiday tunes!
Welcome to issue 89 of Iterate Weekly!
Just a reminder that you can always reply to this email or leave a comment on the web version. I read all of them, and I appreciate the feedback, questions, and insights from all of you.
Let’s jump into this week’s stories.
🤖 Tech
Apple Finally Encourages DIY Repairs
I don’t consider myself to be all that handy. Most repairs in my home require the skills of a trained professional. But when it comes to my technology, I at least want the option to try tinkering and repairing it on my own!
For many years, Apple has shunned the DIY community and encouraged or required consumers to take their products to an Apple store even for basic things like battery swaps or memory upgrades.
But after initially launching in the US, Apple is extending its DIY repair program to 8 countries in Europe.
It’ll give Apple customers access to manuals, tools, and replacement parts to repair specific models of MacBooks and iPhones. You can even rent specific tools that don’t make sense to purchase and receive future discounts when sending in damaged parts for recycling.
This is major boon for those of us who like to get “under the hood” of our favorite devices, but it’s clear that Apple still encourages people to use professional repairs whenever possible. They state that this program is designed for “customers who are experienced with the complexities of repairing electronic devices” and adds that “visiting a professional repair provider with certified technicians who use genuine Apple parts is the safest and most reliable way to get a repair.”
Ok, duly noted Apple. You will not be held responsible when we screw things up even worse when attempting self repairs. I think the only repairs I’ve ever done on an Apple product was upgrading the RAM on my old iMac. It wasn’t difficult but did feel odd given Apple’s pressure to head to the Apple Store for every minor need.
It’s a good feeling to fix your own tech! Let’s hope we see more DIY opportunities from Apple and other tech manufacturers in the future!
Anyone ever done any major DIY repairs on an Apple product?
🎓 Education/Art/Productivity
Join Caveday’s Annual Review
It’s nearly time for all of us to conduct a review of our year!
Yes, I’m a big believer in a yearly recap of what we accomplished, where we traveled, and what we learned in the past year. Everyone will have their own way of reviewing the year, but the specifics aren’t as important as making an effort.
My friends over at Caveday are conducting their live Annual Review Workshop on Tuesday December 20th and I encourage all of you to attend.
In the 60-minute session, you’ll look back at your year and identify things that worked and things that didn’t. You’ll then use those learnings to shape your vision of the year to come. It’s a tremendously worthwhile exercise that will have you feeling proud of your accomplishments and excited to tackle new challenges in January!
And if you can’t make it to the Caveday session, I strongly recommend that you set aside some time over the coming weeks to perform a year-end review. In fact, if you need help and want to book some time on my calendar to get some year-end review pointers (or just say hi!) feel free to book a time slot here.
♻️ Health & Environment
Winter Olympics Climate Concerns
It’s no secret that climate change is having a big impact on many aspects of our lives. Could the Winter Olympics be next?
The host city of the 2030 games has been postponed amid climate concerns.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is rethinking the viability of certain locations to host the games. Any region to host the games needs to have “climate viability” in order to support outdoor events that require freezing temperatures and natural snowfall. Even projecting these things less than ten years into the future is becoming difficult.
Even an increased average temperature of a degree or two could be disastrous for the games. Any casual skier knows about the importance of snow texture and how quickly snow can degrade on a warm afternoon. Slushy conditions can turn into slick and icy conditions after a nightly freeze. The freeze/thaw cycle can make safe competitions much harder to conduct.
So where can the games be held? Three frontrunners all claim to meet the IOC’s climate requirements which include an average minimum temperature below 32 degrees. Salt Lake City, Vancouver, and Sapporo have risen to top consideration. But the real question is if any other cities at all can be viable homes to the games in decades to come. It may make more sense to just rotate the event around a small group of host cities rather than conducting a lengthy bid process for new locations every few years.
Even the Summer Olympics has entertained this idea over the coming years. The buildup for an Olympics can be expensive and difficult for any host city. If we keep a short list of contenders, they won’t need the fast builds of new facilities and staffing of seasonal employees.
We know two things for sure, climate change is real and the Olympics are a complicated event to host. Let’s hope that the IOC can find a suitable solution in the coming months to make sure the 2030 games go off without a hitch.
🛍 Grab Bag
Portable Bathrooms Don’t Need to Be Gross
Let’s be real, the world doesn’t have enough nice portable bathrooms. Particularly in the United States, it can be a real hassle to find a sanitary public bathroom in many cities. Bathrooms are often locked, hard to find, or just plain gross (something I’ve rediscovered while being the Dad of a potty-training child).
But portable toilets don’t need to be gross. In fact, there is a growing effort to make porta-potties down right luxurious!
The pandemic really made many people realize how big of a problem this was. With an increased concern about germs, people came to expect more from their public restroom experience.
Once company looking to improve public toilet standards is The Posh Privy. I’ve had the pleasure of using their facilities at several locations around Northern California. Their 2-door luxury bathrooms have standard lighting, sinks, and flushable toilets like you’d find indoors while still providing the convenience of a movable washroom.
For a less traditional option, take a look at Jupe. Their facilities resemble outdoor abstract art more than a porta-potty. With things like no-touch faucets, unlocking via apps, and solar panels, the portable toilets of the future aim to be better for us and better for the environment.
Here’s to a future of more delightful public restroom experiences!
💬 Quote of the Week
"Aren’t we forgetting the true meaning of Christmas? You know, the birth of Santa"
-Bart Simpson
🎧 Content Recommendation
SiriusXM Holiday Stations
I have another holiday-themed content recommendation for you this week. If you are a Sirius XM subscriber, I want to bring to your attention the huge variety of holiday music channels that are available for your listening pleasure.
I used to turn my nose at most songs that fall into the “holiday” music category. Aside from the wonderful Sufjan Stevens Christmas Discography, I wasn’t interested in most of the mainstream hits. And I surely wouldn’t get excited about the standard songs that end up on the radio around this time each year.
But I want to give a shout out to the often maligned Sirius XM for putting together a really diverse selection of holiday music streams. I love some of the non-traditional covers found on the “Rockin’ Xmas” channel. The “Holiday Chill Out” channel is the perfect antidote for a stressful season. And I also have a soft spot for the “‘70s/’80s Holiday” channel that is just the right amount of sappy but with some hidden gems that weren’t overplayed on terrestrial radio.
To summarize, don’t just dismiss all holiday music. Do a little bit of research to find your style and enjoy some yule time tunes this month. Sirius XM has made it pretty easy for us.
Hey! I’m testing out some polling tools. Keep your eyes on this section and please help me get some feedback by taking a second to choose an answer in my poll. Thank you!
POLL
Thanks for reading, I’ll see you next week!
P.S. - Hey, it’s almost the end of the year! Could you use some help reviewing what worked for you this year and what could be better for 2023? Need some help building positive habits or ditching negative ones? Iterating on a new business idea and need some guidance? Or maybe you just want to say hello and pick my brain for a bit, that’s fine too! If you’d like to chat, feel free to book some time with me here!